Rebuilding
by lbc163
Summary: After Konoha is destroyed by Pain, Neji and Tenten find comfort in eachother.


_Hello Everyone! This is my first fanfiction. I have been meaning to write one for a while… So here it is! To summarize it, it is basically Neji and Tenten immediately following the invasion of Pain. I haven't seen anyone try to write this yet so I thought I'd give it a shot. To be honest, I got a lot of inspiration from the fanfiction __**Neji Gaiden**__ by __**HighQueen**__. That fic is one of the best I've ever read, so if you haven't read it yet, you should! So yeah. Sorry if my fic is bad or something. Feel free to correct any mistakes (I wrote this at like two in the morning)._

Disclaimer: If owned Naruto, Tenten would have more than two lines every thirty episodes, and this would be canon.

Everything was gone.

The Hokage's building, the Academy, the restaurants, the houses, everything. It would have been nearly impossible to tell that Konoha, only hours beforehand, had occupied what is now a giant, desolate, crater. The only evidence of the great village were the rubble and the great monument to the Hokages. It was hard to believe that one man was the cause of all this destruction. It was Pain, the possessor of Rinnegan, who had caused all of this chaos. In one mighty blow, he had wiped out all of Konoha. It was a scary thought. If Naruto hadn't arrived, the situation probably would've become much more dire.

Neji Hyuga pondered all of this while overlooking the village. Everyone else had gone to greet Naruto after returning from battling the man who, apparently, controlled all of the Pains. It was a celebration of sorts. Many had made it through all of the battles with minor injuries, and those who hadn't were somehow brought back to life. There were still many mysteries surrounding the many events that had occurred. While everyone had gathered around Naruto, praising him for his heroic deeds, Neji had chosen to stand a little ways back from the crowd. It's not that he didn't appreciate what Naruto had gone through for the whole village, it's just that he preferred quiet solitude to crowds. In fact, Neji actually harbored quite a bit of respect for the blond-haired shinobi. While Naruto was usually a loudmouthed idiot, he did have his moments. A few years ago, Neji's life had revolved around hate and destiny. But, his battle with Naruto in the Chunin Exams had changed him. Neji also respected his commitment to bringing back Sasuke, even though he had deserted the village.

By now, the crowd had begun to dissipate. Everyone started to wonder off in different directions, but no one really knew where to go. Neji felt quite the same, it was not as if he could just go home to the Hyuga compound. Neji turned around and started making his way towards the crowd. He was compelled to look for his team, specifically a certain bun-haired kunoichi, but, he felt that he had an obligation to go to his clan first.

Making his way through the crowd, Neji activated his Byakugan. Finding his clan was a very easy task. Hiashi-sama, along with many others, were gathered in a clearing not too far from where he was.

Once Neji had arrived in the clearing, he approached Hiashi-sama.

"Ah, Neji. You are alright," Hiashi said, "I am glad."

"Yes, Hiashi-sama. Is Hinata-sama well?" Neji inquired. During the battle, Hinata had been injured while fighting Pain. Even though Neji had hated and pitied her for most of his life, he now was sincerely concerned for her.

"Hinata will recover with time. Luckily, none of her injuries were fatal," Hiashi replied, "While I would like to be by her side, as clan head, I have a responsibility to oversee the and guide the clan."

"I see. What would our orders be?"

Hiashi sighed. "At this moment, everything is extremely chaotic. Do as you please. Just remember Neji, you are a Hyuga shinobi. Carry yourself with dignity. In these situations, many look to the strong for guidance."

"Yes. Thank you, Hiashi-sama," Neji replied.

Neji turned around and left the clearing, not bothering to speak with anyone else from the clan. He activated his Byakugan, attempting to find who he really just wanted to be with in the first place; Tenten. She was one of the few people whom Neji could call a friend. In fact, she was more than a friend to him. Since they were placed on Team Gai together, they had both usually found solace in eachother when they were forced to deal with Gai and Lee's antics. Their relationship had matured and blossomed into something more than friendship. Neji cared for her, but he was not quite sure if she felt the same. Also, Neji was not one to act on or reveal feelings. He supposed he would just wait and see how things played out.

Neji found Tenten with his Byakugan as easily as he had found his clan. She was standing about a hundred yards from where he was. She appeared to be surveying the damage, just as he had.

He strolled up to her from behind. She had heard his footsteps and turned around. Her eyes brightened up a little bit when she saw it was Neji.

"Hey, Neji," Tenten called out.

Neji strolled up to her, standing by her side, overlooking the damage. Tenten looked quite down. He was tempted to take her hand, but he couldn't bring himself to do it, it could be awkward. He treasured her friendship, and he was terrified to ruin it. Anyway, he was content to just be in her presence.

"Hey, Tenten. How… are you?" Neji asked lamely. Considering the village was destroyed, it was a silly question to ask. Of course she would be dejected, as anyone should be in this situation. Tenten had no family, so she was quite alone. Team Gai was the closest thing she had to a family.

"I'm well enough," Tenten replied, not meeting his gaze, "It's just that, I never imagined that something of this scale could happen. I thought it was terrible when Orochimaru had invaded… But at least the village had been standing afterwards!"

Tenten was beginning to tear up. But, there was no way she would let Neji see her cry. She is not weak.

"Despite the circumstances, I believe that everything will be okay. While the village is gone, everyone is still alive. Also, unlike the Orochimaru invasion, we still have a strong Hokage to stand behind" Neji answered.

Tenten looked up at this, with her slightly frantic brown eyes meeting his.

"Neji, didn't you hear?" Tenten inquired, "Tsunade-sama is in a coma. They don't know if she is going to wake up! What are we going to do?-"

"I wish I had an answer for you…" Neji murmured softly.

But, Tenten continued her rant, "-The whole place is in shambles! Where is everyone going to stay? Where am _I _going to stay? I-I… have no family. I just don't know what I'm g-going to do…"

Tenten had begun to shake a little. It appeared as if she was about to break down. Neji thought for a moment, and he slowly raised his arms, bringing Tenten into his chest. Tenten wrapped her arms around his lower back, putting her face in the crook of his neck. Neji began to feel a wetness where Tenten had put her face. She was quietly sobbing into his neck. Neji felt a strange twisting sensation in his stomach. Even though he hated seeing her so upset, he couldn't help but be somewhat pleased that she was in his arms.

Tenten broke the contact around thirty seconds later. She stepped back a few paces, vigorously rubbing her eyes. He knew she was embarrassed- she hated crying and appear weak to others.

"I- I'm sorry, Neji," Tenten quickly muttered, "It's just that-"

"Tenten, it's fine," Neji interrupted, "I don't mind."

Tenten smiled, with a slight blush creeping up her cheeks. She looked a little more at ease now, which gladdened Neji.

"Would you like to go for a walk?" Neji asked. It was probably around five o'clock, and there wasn't much else to do. He wasn't even sure where he was going to sleep, or even eat for that matter. Hopefully he, and Tenten, would find some way to make due.

"Yeah, sure," Tenten replied.

They both made their way into what looked like a very large makeshift campsite. There were a few tents around, but they appeared to only be medical tents. He thought of his poor cousin Hinata. He would have to make sure to remember to check up on her at some point.

Occasionally, Neji and Tenten would run into someone they knew, but no one seemed to have time to converse. They both kept an eye out for Lee, but they never ran into him. Everyone was looking for their friends and family. Countless civilians, along with shinobi, we clutching loved ones. Everyone was thankful that they had all made it out of this disaster alive.

Around an hour or so later, they found out where some medical-nins were rationing out food. Both Neji and Tenten were starving because earlier that day, they were just about to stop for lunch after getting back from a lengthy mission, only to have to rush back to Konoha to witness the destruction of the village. They hadn't eaten since early in the morning.

Neji frowned. It was unlikely that they would get their hands on whatever they were serving, anyway. There's a whole village to feed, and feeding the children and the elderly would probably take preference over them. Resources are going to be stretched extremely thin.

"Hey… Neji, I'm going to try grab us some food, okay?" Tenten said.

"Hn," Neji replied.

Tenten made her way through the crowd in an attempt to procure some food. Neji walked over to a tree and leaned on it while he waited for her. He inhaled deeply and let out a sigh. While he tried to remain positive for Tenten, deep down he doubted whether Konoha could actually be rebuilt. It would take quite an effort to build an entire village from the ground up.

Neji was brought out of his reverie a few minutes later when she walked up to him with two bowls of rice and two pairs of chopsticks. Although it was quite meager, Neji was greatful that it was atleast _something_, even if it was only steamed rice.

"This was all they were giving out…" Tenten said as she plopped down on the ground. Neji sat down as well, taking his bowl.

"Thank you, Tenten," Neji said.

"No problem, Neji," Tenten replied, "Well, itadakimasu."

They both inhaled their rice quite quickly, without talking. By the time they were done, the sun was completely down. Neji had no idea what he was going to do for the night. He supposed he might as well stay right where he was, under the tree. He was about to ask Tenten what she wanted to do, when she spoke up herself.

"Ummm… Neji? I was wondering if I could stay – with you?" Tenten asked with a slight blush creeping up her cheeks.

Neji was a bit taken aback by her question - _did she really think he would just cast her off or something?_

"Of course you can, Tenten," Neji answered quietly.

"Oh… Okay," Tenten replied, somewhat awkwardly.

Since it was getting dark, they both settled down with their backs to the tree that they had eaten under. They were about a foot away from each other. Neji was wondering what he should do. _Should I hold her hand? Would that be too forward? I don't even know how she feels… _More than anything, Neji did not want to do anything to ruin their friendship. He knew that if he did something that was too… strange or forward, and she doesn't want to reciprocate, that could mess up the relationship that they had been building. Neji resolved to just sit there and do nothing.

They had both been quite for a while until Tenten spoke up.

"Neji… Are you scared?" She asked, not making eye contact with him.

"I-" Neji was not sure how to answer. _Should I act strong? Should I tell the truth…? _After taking a moment to pause, Neji continued.

"Yes, I am scared," Neji answered truthfully.

"You… Are?" Tenten was shocked that he had admitted this. Neji never admitted to being scared of _anything_.

"Yes, I am," Neji replied, "Considering the circumstances, fear would be rational. I think it would be stupid to walk around and pretend like we aren't vulnerable. With most of Akatsuki still at large, we have to keep our guard up. We have to rebuild. Even though it will be tough, I know we can rebuild as along as we have eacho-everyone."

Neji reddened and cursed himself for his verbal hiccup. Neji hoped that Tenten didn't notice.

"Hmmm… I a-agree…" Tenten said as she stifled a yawn.

A few moments later, Tenten slipped her hand into Neji's hand and squeezed. Neji smiled faintly and squeezed back, not really sure what to say. After a few minutes her breathing had softened and she had fallen asleep. She slowly slumped over onto Neji's shoulder.

_She looks so peaceful_, Neji thought, becoming drowsier and drowsier by the second, slowly falling asleep.

That's when he knew. He knew that he would be able to get through anything – as long as he had her by his side.

_So that's the end of the first chapter! This fic will probably go for 4-5 more chapters, up into the war. Sorry if the beginning was sort of slow… I promise more fluffy moments in future chapters!_

_Feel free to correct anything and make suggestions!_


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